UBX – DR. DRE: Segment 01
Andre Young was born in South Central L.A. on February 18th 1965. His family moved to Compton while he was in grade school, and by the time he reached his teens, music was consuming most of his life. Growing up with Motown, the young DJ would mix the classics with groups of the day like Funkadelic and Zapp. (clip: Zapp) DJ’ing at Skateland, the local roller rink and Compton hot spot, Dre was making a name for himself with his blend of old Soul and Funk.
Alonzo Williams, owner of the legendary Compton club Eve After Dark, hired the 17-year-old DJ and his partner Yella in 1982, and his popularity landed Dre a mix show on the pioneering LA Rap station K-DAY FM. With Rap officially on the airwaves, and a star DJ on his hands, Alonzo decided to form a group, The World Class Wrecking Cru. The squad consisted of Dre, DJ Yella, their pal Cli-N-Tel and Alonzo aka Grandmaster Lonz. (clip) With influences like L.A Dream Team, and Afrika Bambatta, The World Class Wrecking Cru was an example of the era’s fusion of Rap and Electro and became one of Southern Cali’s most popular acts. Although the music wasn’t cutting edge, it established Dre as an MC and producer. (montage)
By ‘87, Dre was looking for other production opportunities, and signed on to produce for Ruthless Records, formed by Jerry Heller and his partner Eric “Eazy-E” Wright. (clip) Eazy wanted the track Boyz–N-The Hood, produced by Dre and written by his friend Ice Cube, for Ruthless artist HBO, but they kept it for themselves, put Eazy on the vocals and NWA was born. (clip)
The track was featured on ‘87’s compilation album “NWA and The Posse”. Sonically, there were traces on the album of the west-coast hip hop sound that Dre would make famous in the 90’s, but there was still a heavy Electro influence from his World Class Wrecking Cru days. (clip). 2 years later, NWA was now a 5 man unit: Dre as producer, DJ Yella, Ice Cube as the main writer, MC Ren and Eazy-E, the charismatic lead man. Their next album, produced by Dre in six weeks, the classic “Straight Outta Compton”, transformed Rap music with its politically charged tales of street life and introduced Gangsta Rap to the world. (montage) The album cemented Dre as a groundbreaking producer, basically leaving the Electro behind and blending his funk with the intense sounds of New York’s Bomb Squad production team, who were responsible for Public Enemy’s revolutionary records. (clip) With financial tensions running high, Ice Cube left N.W.A in 1989, on bad terms. Later that year, the EP “100 Miles and Runnin’” was released, leading up to NWA’s 3rd full-length album “Efil4zaggin”. With Cube gone, NWA was less political and even though the album hit Number 1 on the Pop charts, Dre was having financial problems with Ruthless Records, and left the group in ‘91. (clip)
8 years into his career, Dr. Dre had already played a major role in the World Class Wrecking Cru and changed Hip Hop forever with NWA. (clip) Along with the Bomb Squad, Dr. Dre was one of the biggest producers in the game. He was responsible for putting artists like Michel’le and Above The Law on the map and created a classic album with The D.O.C. (clip)
You’re inside The Unauthorized Biography of Dr. Dre. Here’s one of his earliest tracks, it’s the song that gave him his name, The World Class Wrecking Cru “Surgery”.
UBX – DR. DRE: Segment 02
Despite his professional success in the 80’s and early 90’s, Dre was going through personal problems. On top of splitting with NWA, he was arrested for breaking the jaw of a LA producer and again for assaulting a cop in New Orleans, his house burned down, he was shot four times in the leg, and a multi-million dollar lawsuit was filed against him by MTV host Dee Barnes for allegedly assaulting her. Dre was on his own for the first time and needed to get out of his deal with Ruthless. Enter Suge Knight, former publicist for then superstar Vanilla Ice. Suge allegedly held Eazy-E at gunpoint threatening to kill him if he wouldn’t let Dre out of his contract, an offer he couldn’t refuse. Eazy later sued Dre for breach of contract, a lawsuit that would remain unresolved because of Eazy’s death from AIDS in 1995. Free from Ruthless Records, Dre and Suge formed Death Row Records under Jimmy Iovine’s Interscope label. (clip)
Dre had big plans and Suge saw the vision. Along with The D.O.C. and a fresh group of artists like RBX, Rage, Nate Dogg, Daz, Jewelle and Kurupt, Dre had once again surrounded himself with an all-star crew. The MVP was Snoop Doggy Dogg from Long Beach California, a friend of Dre’s stepbrother Warren G. In the spring of ‘92, Dre released his first solo single “Deep Cover” introducing us to an 18-year-old Snoop! (clip). Off the Deep Cover movie soundtrack, the single had a huge buzz and the streets were waiting to hear what Dre would come with next. (sample)
“The Chronic”, Dre’s 1st solo album, was released December 15th 1992 and immediately marked a new period in Hip Hop. Combining the gangsta lyrics his fans were used to with a new smoked out funk and live instrumentation, Dre once again provided an alternative to what was going on in the mainstream. Inspired by George Clinton’s P-Funk movement, and the sound of the 70’s in general, Dre created a genre that he could finally call his own - G-Funk! Going multi-platinum, “The Chronic” spent 8 months on Billboard’s Top Ten and peaked at #3 on the pop charts. (montage)
“The Chronic” was an instant classic, paving the way for Rap’s commercial explosion in the mid 90’s. Snoop was all over the album, and its success was the perfect launching pad for his solo career. “Doggystyle” in ‘93, produced by Dre and featuring Snoop’s signature laidback flow, went 4x’s platinum and was the first debut album to enter the Billboard pop charts at #1. (montage)
Death Row was flourishing, G-Funk had taken over the airwaves and Dr. Dre was in high demand. In 1994 he was supervising producer for the Above the Rim soundtrack, which launched the careers of Warren G and Nate Dogg, and later that year he produced the Murder Was the Case soundtrack. Regarded as The Chronic Pt II, Murder Was the Case reunited Dre with Ice Cube on the track “Natural Born Killaz” after their highly publicized NWA-related beef. (clip) The year after, Dre dropped “Keep Their Heads Ringing” from the Friday soundtrack before having to spend 5 months in jail for a parole violation. Probably the biggest year for Death Row, in 1996, 2Pac’s monumental label debut “All Eyez on Me” hit the stores led by Dre’s #1 Pop classic “California Love”. (clip).
You’re inside The Unauthorized Biography of Dr. Dre. From “The Chronic” here’s “Lil’ Ghetto Boy” featuring Snoop Doggy Dogg.
UBX – DR. DRE: Segment 03
By summer 1996, the infamous EC/WC beef was in full effect. Dr. Dre had grown tired of Suge Knight’s hostile techniques and sour reputation plus they were having financial disagreements. Death Row was at the top of the rap game but despite it all he, declared “gangsta rap dead”, formed Aftermath and walked away. It was the beginning of the end for Death Row. Long story short, ‘Pac was murdered that September, compared to Doggystyle, Snoop’s 2nd album was a disappointment without Dre’s production, and Suge was imprisoned for racketeering a year later.
Dre completely abandoned the G-Funk sound he made famous, but still kept pumpin’ out hits, proving that he couldn’t be pigeonholed. Scoring another #1 pop hit in late ‘96, Dre produced “No Diggety” with BlackStreet. (clip) He also dropped “Dr. Dre presents The Aftermath” his first release on his new label. Although the album is considered a flop by many, the singles “Been There Done That” and “EC/WC Killaz” with KRS-1, Nas, Cypress Hill’s B-Real and RBX showed Dre’s desire for peace in hip hop and laid the foundation for Aftermath to blow up. (clip)
With ‘Pac gone and Biggie’s death in ‘97, the EC/WC beef was officially over and the focus was back on the music. In ’98 Dre hooked up with Nas, Foxy Brown, AZ and Nature for The Firm project, which on paper looked unstoppable. The album was over-hyped though, with Dre’s “Phone Tap” being the only standout track (clip).
In 1999 Dre’s fate would take a turn for the better. Always hungry for new talent, Dre discovered the demo of young white Detroit rapper Marshall Mathers aka Eminem (ch-ching) An hour into their first meeting they had already begun recording the controversial, quirky and catchy "My Name Is”. With the lead single from the #2 pop album, “The Slim Shady LP”, Dre opened the door for suburbia to embrace Hip Hop like never before, all while keeping his street credibility. This delicate balance would provide the blueprint for multiple Eminem albums, the launch of 50 Cent’s commercial career and the now famous G-Unit, Shady/Aftermath dynasty. (montage)
Seven years after “The Chronic”, Dre’s highly anticipated 2nd LP, “The Chronic 2001” hit the stores. Featuring everyone from Snoop to Eminem to Mary J. Blige, Dre resurrected and renewed G-Funk, hitting #2 on the pop charts and giving him 3 Grammies! (montage) Keeping up with the album’s momentum, The Up in Smoke Tour hit the road with an all-star line up, resulting in sold out shows coast to coast. While in Detroit, police threatened to arrest Dre if he aired the graphic video that introduced the show. The result? Dre sued the Motorcity for $25 million claiming his right to free speech was violated. Now that’s gangsta (change)!
Dr. Dre’s music is part of the soundtrack to our lives, making timeless classics that bang in the car, the club and the crib. The chances he took and trends he set, paved the way for countless artists to achieve critical acclaim and reach multi-platinum success - something that was unheard of when he started in the rap game over 20 years ago. Showing discipline in the studio, and an uncanny ear for detail in his work, Dre’s reputation for being a perfectionist is the reason why he stays at the top of the game and is in constant demand from the best in the business. (clip)
You’ve been listening to The Unauthorized Biography of Dr. Dre. From “The Chronic: 2001” here’s Still D.R.E.
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